The walls of Fenway Park are getting a little crowded with sports gambling options, now that Kalshi has joined the fray and added its logo to stadium signs.
Except with Kalshi in mind, please don’t call it sports betting.
The New York-based company runs a prediction market, in which players bet against other players instead of the “house,” and it refers to bets on its platform as “trades.” These are important legal distinctions because prediction markets are currently regulated at the federal level, by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, while traditional sports betting is under the purview of the states.
This distinction is being challenged in the courts, including in Massachusetts. In the meantime, big sports-betting players such as Boston-based DraftKings (also a Red Sox sponsor) and FanDuel have launched their own prediction markets to enter states that have not yet legalized traditional sports betting. Prediction markets also go beyond sporting events, to encompass bets on everything from world affairs to pop culture.
Adam Barrick, head of sports partnerships at Kalshi, said his company’s signs have been up at Fenway Park for a few weeks. However, Kalshi waited until Tuesday to announce its multi-year Red Sox partnership, to time it with announcements about similar partnerships with the Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, and San Francisco Giants. (Red Sox principal owner John Henry is also publisher and owner of The Boston Globe.)
“We’re thrilled to be working with the Red Sox [who have] an engaged fan base, particularly this year, with them going on a playoff run,” Barrick said. “They’ve made quite a comeback this year.”
As the team’s “official prediction market partner,” Kalshi will be featured in digital signs throughout Fenway Park, along with static signs behind home plate, Barrick said, plus engagements with the Sox on social media platforms and on the WEEI radio station. Kalshi didn’t disclose terms of the deal.
The Green Monster wall already features the logos of BetMGM (the team’s “official sports betting partner”) and DraftKings (the “official fantasy sports partner”). A spokesman for DraftKings declined to comment, and BetMGM didn’t respond to a request for comment.
The Sox issued a brief statement saying the team is looking forward to working with Kalshi in “creating new opportunities” to engage fans at Fenway and through its digital and broadcast channels.
Kalshi said prediction-market “trades” involving baseball are up 36 percent on its platform this year, compared with the same time last year. The five partnerships are Kalshi’s first Major League Baseball sponsorships, though it does already have partnerships with several National Hockey League teams.
Barrick is well aware that state Attorney General Andrea Campbell won a federal court order in January, blocking Kalshi from offering sports-related contracts in Massachusetts. Campbell is among the state attorneys general who argue Kalshi’s trades are a form of sports betting, and should be regulated at the state level. Campbell’s order is on hold while the case is being appealed.
“We’re fully operational in the state,” Barrick said. “There’s obviously an active discourse in the state right now around our product but we didn’t have [any] hesitation in terms of working with the Red Sox with that going on.”
Jon Chesto can be reached at jon.chesto@globe.com. Follow him @jonchesto.
